July 2016 - Lessons Learned

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 8 of 68

TH E M R EP O RT
| 7
MDWELL
Positive economic indicators typically include a strong
U.S. dollar, job gains, lower oil prices, increased consumer
spending, and general improvements in the housing
and business sectors. Based on these indicators, Utah,
Washington, and California have the best economies, ac-
cording to WalletHub.
In order to identify the best-performing state econo-
mies, WalletHub's analysts compared the 50 states and the
District of Columbia across three key areas: economic activ-
ity, economic health, and innovation potential. In addition,
the states were scored based on 23 metrics and given a
value between 0 and 100 (wherein 100 represents the most
favorable economic conditions for a state and 0 the least).
For real estate investors, better economies could mean
more opportunities in a flourishing housing market. With
more than 15 years of experience in the SFR market, Tim
Herriage, CEO, 2020 REI Investment told MReport that
he focuses on economic fundamentals when it comes to
deciding where to invest.
"I have always focused on jobs and schools as the main
driver for my investment decisions," he said. "Chasing high
rents, without understanding the important underlying fun-
damentals: leads to poor investment decisions."
STATES WITH
THE BEST
ECONOMIES:
UTAH The state with the best
economy for investors is Utah,
with a WalletHub score of 71.55.
Here, economic activity and
health are both ranked second
out of all states, whole innovation
potential is ranked fourth.
WASHINGTON
Though Washington took the
second place spot overall, the
state came in first place in terms
of economic activity. In addition,
the state is 10th in terms of eco-
nomic health, and third in terms
of innovation potential. Overall,
Washington has a WalletHub
score of 70.68.
CALIFORNIA
Third on the list for best econo-
mies in the U.S. is California. This
state received a score of 67.84
and is ranked second overall for
innovation potential. Economic
activity and health ranked fourth
and 12th, respectively.
MASSACHUSETTS
WalletHub placed Massachusetts
fourth on the list, and the state
took the first place spot for inno-
vation potential. Economic activity
ranked eighth, while economic
health came 15th place.
COLORADO
Wrapping up the top five is
Colorado, with an overall score
of 60.81. The state did best in
the innovation category in fifth
place, while taking the seventh
and ninth spots in economic
health and activity categories.
Where Real Estate Investors
Should Be Placing Their Bets
STATES WITH
THE WORST
ECONOMIES:
MISSISSIPPI
The worst economy by far is
located in the state of Mississippi.
WalletHub gave it a score of
31.86 and it held the last place
spot for economic activity.
Economic health is ranked 48th
and innovation potential took
44th place.
ARKANSAS
Arkansas came in second on the
worst economies list, with a score
of 33.94. In addition, economic
activity is ranked 49th, economic
health is ranked 36th, and
innovation potential took the last
place spot.
WEST VIRGINIA
Third on the list is the state of
West Virginia. The WalletHub
score in this state is 34.31 and
innovation potential held the
50th spot of all the states.
Economic activity and health are
43rd and 47th on the list.
MAINE
The state of Maine has the
fourth-worst economy in the
U.S. The score here is 34.34. The
state came in 48th for economic
activity, 45th for economic health,
and 47th for innovation potential.
NEW MEXICO
New Mexico concluded the list
for the bottom five economies
with a WalletHub score of 34.52.
The state is ranked last in terms
of economic health, 47th in terms
of economic activity, and 15th for
innovation potential.
Source: WalletHub's 2016's States with the Best & Worst Economies